title: Assessment of mitral valve commissural morphology by transoesophageal echocardiography predicts outcome after balloon mitral valvotomy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Balloon mitral valvotomy (BMV) is a safe and an effective treatment in patients with symptomatic rheumatic mitral stenosis. This study was conducted to validate the importance of assessing the morphology of mitral valve commissures by transoesophageal echocardiography and thereby predicting the outcome after balloon mitral valvotomy [BMV].
  
  
  METHODS
  Study consisted of 100 patients with symptomatic mitral stenosis undergoing BMV. The Commissural Morphology and Wilkins score were assessed by transoesophageal echocardiography. Both the commissures (anterolateral and posteromedial) were scored individually according to whether non-calcified fusion was absent (0), partial (1), or extensive (2) and calcification (score 0) and combined giving an overall commissural score of 0-4. Outcome of BMV was correlated with commissural score and Wilkins score.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The commissural score and outcome after BMV correlated significantly. 66 of 70 patients (94%) with a commissural score of 3-4 obtained a good outcome compared with only six (20%) patients of 30 with a commissural score of 0-2 (positive and negative predictive accuracy 94% and 80%, respectively, p < 0.001). Increase in 2DMVA post BMV was more in patients with higher commissural score (score of 3-4). Wilkins score <8 usually predicts a good outcome but even in patients with Wilkins score >8 a commissural score >2 predicts a 50% chance of a good result.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A higher commissural score predicts a good outcome after BMV hence it can be concluded that along with Wilkins score, commissural morphology and score should be assessed with TOE in patients undergoing BMV.
authors.affiliation: Senior Resident, Department of Cardiology, Sri Venkateswara Institute of Medical Sciences, Tirupati 517507, Andhra Pradesh, India. Electronic address: sarathpgi@gmail.com.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Sarath Babu
authors.forename: K P
authors.initials: KP
authors.lastname: Ranganayakulu
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Rajasekhar
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Vanajakshamma
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Pramod Kumar
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D063126:Balloon Valvuloplasty / Q000009:adverse effects; D017548:Echocardiography, Transesophageal; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008943:Mitral Valve / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D008944:Mitral Valve Insufficiency / Q000209:etiology; D008946:Mitral Valve Stenosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D011379:Prognosis; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult